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Head Injury & Brain Injury

Greenville, Spartanburg, South Carolina

Suffering a head injury can be devastating depending on how severe the injury is. Extremely severe head injuries may also lead to brain damage or death. If the injury was sustained while on-the-job, your employer may be responsible for paying all of your medical expenses and lost wages. The head and brain injury lawyers of the Dick James Law Firm focus much of their practice on helping residents of the Greenville, South Carolina area who have suffered a workplace injury.

Types of Head Injuries

A head injury is defined as any trauma to the head and may also involve brain damage. There are different types of head injuries that range in severity from a mild bump on the head to a life-threatening injury.

• Linear skull fracture is a common head injury that involves a break in the skull that follows a relatively straight line.
• Depressed skull fracture is a common result of a forceful impact to the head by a heavy blunt object. The injury causes a dent in the skull bone. If the depth of the dent is equal to or larger than the thickness of the surrounding skull, surgery may be required to elevate the pieces and examine the brain for injury.
• Basilar skull fracture occurs at the base of the skull and is caused by severe blunt trauma to the head. This type of head injury often connects to the sinus cavities and may allow fluid to enter the skull and cause infection. Surgery is usually not necessary.
• Subdural hematoma means there is bleeding between the brain tissue and the dura mater (layer of tissue between the brain and skull). This type of head injury can be acute (sudden) or chronic (slowly accumulating) and is potentially serious, possibly requiring surgery.
• Epidural hematoma occurs between the dura mater and the skull. This injury can cause pressure against the brain tissue and may cause significant brain damage.
• Subarachnoid hemorrhage is caused by blood accumulation beneath the layer of tissue that surrounds the brain. It may cause headache, vomiting and a stiff neck, but treatment is often observation with no surgery unless the symptoms worsen.
• Cerebral contusion describes bleeding into the brain itself. It is basically a bruise to the brain that requires observation of the patient, but no surgery unless there is a large bleed.

Diagnosing a Head Injury

Minor head injuries are fairly common and do not cause lasting problems. You generally "see stars" for a short period of time, have a mild headache for a while, and then all is well again.
Sometimes, a head injury isn't so simple, however. A more serious injury may cause some or all of the following side effects:

• Severe headache
• Vomiting
• Confusion
• Drowsiness
• Weakness or trouble walking

Causes of a head injury vary widely, but they are either a penetrating trauma or a blunt head trauma. A head injury can be very serious and you should seek medical attention to be sure you are not in any danger. If you have suffered a head injury at work, you should report the injury immediately and request to be seen by a medical professional.

Your head injury may be mild, or it may be much more severe than you realize. It is always better to err on the side of caution and your employer is legally required to cooperate. If you have suffered a head injury on-the-job in Spartanburg or Greenville, South Carolina, please contact the Dick James Law Firm to speak with an experienced workplace injury attorney.